Spheniscus humboldti

“I love swimming in the cold water of the Peruvian sea.”

Estado de conservación mundial

VU Vulnerable 

¿Quien soy?

I am a flightless bird with a small and robust body, with strong black fins adapted for swimming. I have a short 4-inch bill and have a whitish band in the middle of it. I dig my nests in the guano or in salty areas, where the females of my species lay their eggs with an incubation period of 35 days.

¿De qué me alimento?

I have a high-protein diet. I eat mainly fish such as pejerrey (Odontesthes regia) or anchoveta (Engraulis ringens). Sometimes, I can catch and eat small crustaceans.

¿Dónde vivo?

I am a typical animal of the Peruvian Humboldt current – that is how I got my name. You can find me in Peru, from the south of Piura to Tacna, at sea level.

Para que me conozcas mejor

Agile or fast?

My water agility is also due to the shape of my body covered with two layers of compact and waterproof feathers that protect me from the cold water. My wings serve as paddles, and they can reach up to 14 km per hour. Plus, I can swim down to 30 meters deep in the ocean to hunt anchoveta and pejerrey fish.